Weekend Recap - Travel Edition

This past weekend I went to Columbus to visit my friend Jenna for her birthday. I have a few pictures from the weekend but I haven't yet downloaded them to my computer so you will have to wait for pictures. Friday night we went to dinner at this delicious Steak and Seafood restaurant called J Gilbert's. It was delicious and there were these really nice older gentleman who were sitting by us who overheard it was Jenna's 26th birthday and kept wishing her a happy birthday. Don't you just love random nice strangers. The waitress also gave Jenna a free dessert for her birthday. Sometimes I miss being in the Midwest where everyone is so nice.

Saturday we went to lunch, shopped, and were going to tailgate for the Ohio State game, but the weather was not cooperating (it was very cold and rainy and windy), so we just met up with some of her friends to watch the game indoors at a sports bar. Normally when I go to a sports bar, there's different TVs showing different games that are on. But not in Buckeye country - ALL the TVs were showing the game. After that we went home to get ready for the night and then we were off to a late dinner and then dancing and singing at this Piano Bar. I had a blast there!

The next morning we got breakfast and did some more shopping, relaxing, and hanging out before I had to go and catch my flight back to DC. When I arrived back in DC, the boyfriends parents were flying out of the same airport, and even though I arrived at the opposite end of the airport, they waited to say bye to me before they went through security. It was good timing and nice of them to wait for me, and also nice for the boyfriend that he was already at the airport and didn't have to come twice in one day. Then it was back to the house to unpack and then off to work the next day. I'm glad I was able to celebrate Jenna's birthday with her!

Happy Birthday to My Blog

Today is the 1 year anniversary of the starting of my blog and my first post! Thank you to all my readers and commenters!

Weekend Recap - The Boyfriends Birthday Edition

This weekend was the boyfriends birthday celebration! Friday night we just chilled at home, he worked on the bikes, we watched a movie, and I surprised him with Crumbs cupcakes. Saturday morning he had to go to an Architecture class, so while he was at that I had a cooking marathon. On the menu for dinner that night was Fried Chicken, Mashed Potatoes, Roasted Asparagus, Lumpia Rolls, Pork Friend Rice, and Oreo Dirt Pudding for dessert. I had called his mom to ask for some of his favorite recipes (the Lumpia Rolls and the Pork Fried Rice), so it was extra special. He was definitely surprised and loved it all. My sister also joined us for dinner, and we were able to discuss some of her wedding plan ideas.

        

The leftovers

Sunday morning started off early as we were all of to Great Falls for a hike. My sister Amy and my friend Beryl were also able to join the boyfriend and I. We hiked for about two hours, and had a great time. The weather was nice and cool, making it ideal.

Beryl, the boyfriend, and my sister Amy

Me and the boyfriend

We saw deer

Short Week Blues

This week is short due to having Monday off for Memorial Day, but it seems to be dragging on and on! After spending an amazingly fun and relaxing weekend at the beach, this week seems to be going as slow as possible.

View from our room at the beach

Today was my boss's last day at work, and my one of roommates decided that she wasn't going to re-sign the lease so now we have 30 days to find someone new. Also, tomorrow is the boyfriends birthday! It totally sneaked up on me, but I was able to come up with some birthday gift and surprises for him so hopefully it will all work out!

Weekend Recap

Can't believe it's already Monday again - the weekend flew by. Friday after work my co-worker and I went to pick up our packets for our race on Sunday. It was gorgeous outside - sunny and warm and just perfect. We got our packets, t-shirts, did a bit of shopping, and then headed home. I relaxed outside for a bit, and then the boyfriend came over and we watched basketball and I made tacos and we chilled out.

Saturday morning, while the boyfriend was at flag football, I had all these grand intentions of going out and being productive and hitting up the town. Well, that didn't happen. Once I finally left the house, the boyfriend came over and we headed to meet up with some of my old co-workers for dinner. It was such a great time getting to catch up with them all, and the food was great as well. Then we had to run off to go out for our friend Chris's 30th birthday bash. Jules hosted the party, and she made the funniest t-shirts with embarrassing pictures of Chris on them along with funny quotes. There was also some Edward 40-hands going on which always leads to a fun time. Unfortunately we couldn't stay out too late, since I had to get up early for the race the next day.

Sunday morning I awoke very early to go meet up with co-workers for the Scope it Out 5k, which is the largest Colon Cancer race in the world. Since it was a group of all girls, we decided to walk and chat the entire way. The group was walking a little too casually for my taste, but it was a great time and great cause.

The Capital - taken during the Scope it Out 5k

Let me take a time out here and let you know how wonderful the boyfriend is. He brought both my bike and his bike all the way out to the race. Then he sat there and waited for me and my friends to finish the race. Since we were walking so slowly, he waited for about 45 mins. He also didn't realize how chilly it was out, so he was freezing the whole time.

The boyfriend with his bike on the metro after soccer

After the race was over, the boyfriend and I darted off to catch the metro and then bike to his soccer game. Two of his teammates are married and both wanted to play in the game. They brought their 2 adorable children to the game, so I walked one around the track in his cart until the babysitters showed up to take over. The boyfriend played amazingly, and his team won 2-1. The weather warmed up and it turned into a beautiful day.


When the game was over, we metroed and biked back to his place to watch basketball. We grocery shopped, made dinner, and settled in to watch the Illinois - Kansas game (Illinois is the boyfriends alma mater), and unfortunately Illinois lost, although they did play their hearts out. Too bad for them, maybe next year!

And now somehow it's Monday already.

Weekend Recap

This weekend was fun-filled and busy, like usual. Friday night my co-worker came over after work to go through a bunch of my old clothes that I was going to give to goodwill. I'm glad they could go to a happy home! After going through all the clothes (there were a lot), we went out to get a bite to eat. The co-worker had just moved here about 2 months ago from California and doesn't know many people so I was glad to show her around town a bit and hopefully we'll hang out again.

Saturday was quite a busy day, the boyfriend and I went to dinner with our friend Jesica, and her boyfriend to celebrate Jesica's birthday. After dinner, we headed to the bar to celebrate her birthday with about 50 of Jesica's closest friends. It was a fun time, but I wasn't feeling 100% so we left before the party ended.

On Sunday, the boyfriend and I escorted our friend Erin to Ikea in search of a new bookshelf for her room. I think we found the perfect one for her, and although I didn't buy anything, Ikea really inspired me to further de-clutter my room to look more like one of their showrooms. So tonight, after drinks with my co-workers, I shall begin the great de-cluttering! I've already made good headway with my clothes (hence the massive donate pile), but I plan on taking some before and after pictures of the rest!

Birthday Weekend Recap

I have so much to update on, but I was so busy last week. I had the most fabulous rest of my birthday week!

Tuesday was the birthday, and Wednesday night I went to my 1st kick-boxing class. They told me to come in for an intro class, where I would learn the proper techniques, but then surprised me when I got there by saying that I would attending the hour long class, which I was totally mentally unprepared for. The class itself was awesome - a nice mix of pushing you, but not pushing you too hard where you just want to give up. And learning some awesome self-defense while getting a good workout is an added bonus. The only drawback was I was so sore. My thighs were burning after the workout, and it hurt to bend over all week. But I plan on going again this Wednesday, so wish me luck!

Thursday was my company's Holiday Party. We left work a bit early to attend a cooking class. We had a demonstration, and then broke up into teams of 4 (randomly assigned), and then cooked 6 different dishes (Trout Deviled Eggs, Phyllo Samosas, Veggie Pot-stickers, Warm Potato Salad (made with sweet potatoes), Bread Pudding, and Tiramisu). It was such a fun time. Then we went to the hotel next door for drinks, and then my co-worker Heather and I had enough food and drinks, so we headed home. It was such a fun time, and a great bonding experience for the group. And, best of all, we got snazzy aprons with our company's name on them.

Friday was my company's 1st Annual Day of Service, and by "day" of service, they actually meant 2 hours. We got to choose between 3 preojcts: cleaning up a stream we adopted, throwing a Holiday Party at a daycare for 4 year olds, or making care packages for the troops. The stream clean-up sounded like fun, but it was a high of 39 that day so that was out. The care packages sounded like fun, but it meant staying back at the office, and I love little kids, so I signed up for the daycare. The daycare was for under-privileged kids whose parents couldn't afford regular day care. Not only the kids but the teachers were so happy to see us! We had them color pictures, create snowflakes which they decorated, and had a pizza party. It was so much fun, but kids are so exhausting to be around. We were only there for 2 hours, but I was wiped afterward. We came back to the office and my boss treated our group to lunch. Then I did a bit of work, and was off for the rest of the afternoon. Every Friday should be like that!

Friday night I wanted to watch Miami University play in the MAC Championship game, so I invited a few friends over. After a few cancellations and the boyfriend having to work late, it ended up being me and my roommate Emily for the majority of the night, which was super fun. Thanks again for celebrating with me Emily. And Miami won, which was awesome! Hooray!

Saturday I was supposed to go watch the boyfriend play in his soccer team's Championship Tournament, but it was way too cold to sit outside, so I opted to just sleep all day and not get out of bed until 2pm. The boyfriend's team is always in 1st place in their division. They always make it to the championships, but can never win to take home all the glory. I thought this would be their year, but it wasn't (they got 2nd). Maybe if I had been there....

The boyfriend planned on taking me ice skating on Saturday night for a romantic date to celebrate my birthday. But, I said it was too cold, so we ended up staying in and watching movies all night, which was a great time.

For my presents, I received a Browns jersey, and the red mittens from the Vancouver Olympics. However, I ruined his gift giving surprises, because he had planned on giving me the Jersey Thursday morning, because Thursday is jersey day in the office. I told him I wasn't wearing a jersey that day because it was our Holiday Party, so I wanted to look a little nicer. He had also planned on giving me the mittens before we went ice skating on Saturday.

Sunday was my soccer teams playoff game. It was about 25 degrees outside with the wind chill, and I cannot begin to explain how cold and strong the wind was. We got our butts kicked in the game, but it was still fun, and was glad to have the boyfriend cheering me on! After the game, we unthawed at home and just watched football the rest of the day (yay Browns and Rams!)

It's My Birthday!

Today is my birthday and I could not feel more loved. My facebook wall has been blowing up all day with everyone wishing me well. My phone has been getting texts all day long with birthday wishes. I've been getting mail all week long from my family. My wonderful amazing boyfriend sent me flowers at work . My co-workers took me out for a wonderful lunch and decorated my desk with balloons . Tonight my boyfriend is taking me out to dinner, and says he has more birthday surprises in store, which I cannot wait for. I am so happy and thank you everyone for making me feel extra-special on my special day!